Sou Sdei and welcome to Campuccino, your fortnightly dispatch of key headlines in Cambodia with a dash of opinion.
To new subscribers, welcome!
It’s been more than two weeks since you last heard from me. I apologise for not keeping up the usual schedule. Things have been a little overwhelming for me at the moment, especially since the war in Ukraine happened. However I refuse to make this about me and try to educate myself as much as I can about the situation before I open my mouth. Despite what is going on, I hope you give yourself a bit of a break from time to time from questioning the madness of this world.
In this issue: grim tales from Sihanoukville, suicide season, labour rights issue and more…
Previously, I told you about grim tales of Sihanoukville. Guess what? There are more. It appears that there are many unreported crimes in shitty ville and what managed to appear in the news barely scratches the surface. This investigative report by Mech Dara and Danielle Keeton-Olsen details how challenging it is for journalists to verify information on crimes happening over there. No sufficient verified info, no reporting, no crimes, right? It is mind-boggling to know that a reporter was being asked to pull some stories, both by the company involved and by the authorities. Also, remember the blood slave story? It caught international media attention and since then the government dismissed the story as fabricated. The alleged victim and members of the team that rescued him were sent in for questioning and were charged with incitement. However, more blood slave cases emerged through news reports by Thai media. The Cambodian authority, of course, denied it, but hey, the Minister of Interior ordered more crackdowns on crime in shitty ville. Let’s hope that the crackdown will actually happen, yeah? 🤷♀️
Did you know that stories of suicide routinely frequent front-page news in Cambodia? Sadly bizarre, huh? According to one journalist featured in this article, they believe that “live news broadcasts of suicide attempts can save lives”. The article reports that this kind of practice can cause copycat effects and increase the number of suicide cases. There is a call for better understanding of mental issues and code of ethics for journalists while reporting such issues. In Cambodia, social stigma around mental health issues remains strong and it puts a lot of pressure on individuals with mental issues to speak out and ask for help. Hence, I’m very glad to see places and initiative such as Sneha Centre and ចង់ដឹង ចង់ឮ - Curiosity to discuss and normalise mental issues.
I wish I wouldn’t have to talk about the NagaWorld strike again and really hoped that the workers could get what they deserve through reasonable negotiations with relevant parties, but no. So, I will continue to update you on this saga because there are a whole lot of bullocks about how authorities are dealing with the situation. Since the beginning of the strike in December, eleven of the strikes’ activists and union leaders are being held in jail on charges of inciting serious social unrest and violation of measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19, according to VOD. On March 11, about 160 NagaWorld strikers were reported to be dragged away violently and sent to a quarantine center. Among those, one female journalist on the site was also assaulted. High-level meeting, organized by the Interior Minister, was conducted on March 9 between senior officials from the police, courts and ministries to discuss the dispute. Any results? Nope.
This next story is more of an honourable mention because I find it funny, in an ironic way. Let's see if I can summarise it in one sentence. Transparency International’s Cambodia’s 10 Most Influential Women in 2021 but two demanded to have their interview contents and names removed from the list because Mu Sochua was also on the list and the two women found that political. LOL
Read the story here.
Visually Pleasing
Arts & Culture
🍛 Earlier this week, I spoke to a group of Berlin-based artists who are doing this project they called “Soul Kitchen”. The project aims to produce a “Cambodian-German Artist’s Cookbook” with recipes and stories shared by female artists and cultural enthusiasts they speak to in Phnom Penh. If this sounds like something you’re interested in, there will be a project launch at Meta House on March 15, 2022.
🤓 If you’re looking for something a bit more academic, check out this lecture on The Making and Unmaking of the National Museum of Cambodia’s Textile Collection with Dr. Magali An-Berthon. The session will be moderated by Dr. Eve Zucker, CKS President and Lecturer in Anthropology, Yale University. The lecture will be on March 16, 2022 from 8:00-9:30 PM (Cambodia Time). See event details here.
🎨 "The Ontology of Form and Color" is a colorful exhibition by artist Pen Robit. The exhibition is on until April 30, 2022. It is on the 35th floor of Rosewood Phnom Penh; free access 24 hours daily.
Overheard on Twitter
📑 Worthy Read
A junior researcher at Future Forum had a go at reimagining mobility in Cambodia. His opinion piece titled “Less Parking Space Is Actually Good for a City” offers insights on parking challenges and requirements in the country and suggests human-centric solutions.
Campuccino is a fortnightly dispatch of key headlines in Cambodia, written by @DarathteyDin from Word & Visual.
I’d love to hear from you. If you have feedback or content ideas, please reach out via tey@wordandvisualmedia.com